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U.S. Department of State

St. Kitts and Nevis Country Report on Human Rights Practices
for 1997

Released by the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor,
January 30, 1998.

ST. KITTS AND NEVIS

St. Kitts and Nevis is a multiparty, parliamentary democracy and
a member of the Commonwealth of Nations. The Constitution provides
the smaller island of Nevis considerable self- government, as
well as the right to secede from the Federation in accordance
with certain enumerated procedures. The Government comprises
a prime minister, a cabinet, and a bicameral legislative assembly.
The Governor General, appointed by the British Monarch, is the
titular head of state, with largely ceremonial powers. After
national elections in June 1995, Dr. Denzil Douglas of the St.
Kitts and Nevis Labour Party became Prime Minister and formed
a government with 7 of 11 seats in the legislature. The judiciary
is independent.

Security forces consist of a small police force, which includes
a 50-person Special Services Unit that receives some light infantry
training, a coast guard, and a small, newly formed defense force.

The mixed economy is based on sugar cane, tourism, and light industry.
Most commercial enterprises are privately owned, but the sugar
industry and 85 percent of arable land are owned by a state corporation.
Per capita gross domestic product was about $5,400 in 1995.

Human rights were generally respected. Poor prison conditions,
apparent intimidation of witnesses and jurors, government restrictions
on opposition access to government-controlled media, and violence
against women were the principal problems.

RESPECT FOR HUMAN RIGHTS

Section 1 Respect for the Integrity of the Person, Including
Freedom From:

a. Political and Other Extrajudicial Killing

There were no political or other extrajudicial killings.

b. Disappearance

There were no reports of politically motivated disappearances.

c. Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman, or Degrading Treatment
or Punishment

Law enforcement authorities abide by the constitutional prohibitions
against the use of torture or other forms of inhuman or degrading
treatment or punishment. Family members, attorneys, and clergy
are permitted to visit detainees regularly.

Prison conditions are poor. St. Kitt's prison was built in the
1830's. Prisoners suffer from severe overcrowding, poor food,
and lax security. These conditions have contributed to riots
in the past, although none occurred in 1997.

The Government permits prison visits by independent human rights
monitors.

d. Arbitrary Arrest, Detention, or Exile

The Constitution prohibits arbitrary arrest and detention, and
this provision is respected in practice. The law requires that
persons detained be brought before a court within 48 hours.

There were no reported cases of exile.

e. Denial of Fair Public Trial

The Constitution provides for an independent judiciary, and the
judiciary is highly regarded. However, intimidation of witnesses
and potential intimidation of jurors in high-profile drug-related
cases threatened this traditional independence.

The court system comprises one high court and four magistrate's
courts at the local level, with the right of appeal to the Eastern
Caribbean Court of Appeal. Final appeal may be made to the Privy
Council in the United Kingdom. There are no military or political
courts. Legal assistance is available for indigent defendants.

The Constitution provides that every person accused of a crime
must receive a fair, speedy, and public trial, and these requirements
are generally observed.

There were no reports of arbitrary government or police interference
in the private lives of individuals. The law requires judicially
issued warrants to search private homes.

Section 2 Respect for Civil Liberties, Including:

a. Freedom of Speech and Press

The Constitution provides for freedom of speech and the press,
and, for the most part, the authorities respected these provisions
in practice. However, the Government owns the only radio and
television station on St. Kitts, and these media generally did
not adequately publicize rallies and conventions held by the opposition
political party. There is a religious television station and
a privately owned radio station on Nevis.

St. Kitts and Nevis does not have a daily newspaper; each of the
major political parties publishes a weekly or biweekly newspaper.
A third weekly newspaper is nonpartisan. The papers are free
to criticize the Government and do so regularly and vigorously.
The nonpartisan paper claims that politicians both in opposition
and the Government have threatened to close it down; however,
the paper recently celebrated its second anniversary without interruption
of its publication. International news publications are readily
available.

The Government does not restrict academic freedom.

b. Freedom of Peaceful Assembly and Association

The Constitution provides for the right of peaceful assembly.
Political parties organized demonstrations, rallies, and public
meetings during the 1995 election campaign without significant
government interference. Many meetings sponsored by the Nevis
Island administration and opposition parties were held in Nevis
to discuss the secession question.

The Constitution provides for the right of association, and the
Government respects this right in practice.

c. Freedom of Religion

The Constitution provides for the free exercise of religion, and
religious practices are not restricted. All groups are free to
maintain links with coreligionists in other countries.

d. Freedom of Movement Within the Country, Foreign Travel,
Emigration, and Repatriation

The Government does not restrict travel within or departure from
the country.

No formal government policy toward refugee or asylum requests
exists. The issue of provision of first asylum did not arise.
There were no reports of forced expulsion of anyone having a
valid claim to refugee status; however, government practice remains
undefined.

Section 3 Respect for Political Rights: The Right of Citizens
to Change Their Government

Citizens are free to change their government by peaceful means.
A vigorous multiparty political system exists in which political
parties are free to conduct their activities. Periodic elections
are held in which all citizens 18 years of age and older may register
and vote by secret ballot.

The Legislative Assembly has 11 elected seats; 8 for St. Kitts
and 3 for Nevis. In the June 1995 elections, Dr. Denzil Douglas'
St. Kitts and Nevis Labour Party won seven of eight seats at stake
in St. Kitts with 60 percent of the popular vote, and Douglas
became Prime Minister. The People's Action Movement (PAM), the
former ruling party, took only one seat, but received 40 percent
of the vote. The Concerned Citizens Movement won two of the three
Nevis seats; the Nevis Reformation Party won the remaining one.
The island of Nevis has considerable self-government and its
own legislature.

In accordance with its rights under the Constitution, the Nevis
Island Assembly in 1996 initiated steps towards secession from
the Federation. After failing to obtain the required two-thirds
majority of the five-seat Assembly in 1996, a secession bill was
reintroduced following the elections, and passed its first reading
in June. The bill must clear a second and third reading before
it is approved. Should the bill be approved, a new constitution
would have to be drafted, followed by an islandwide referendum
on secession in which two-thirds of the votes cast would have
to favor secession. All parties involved have adhered to constitutional
procedures, and no acts of violence have been recorded in connection
with the secession question.

Although the Constitution prohibits discrimination on grounds
of political opinion or affiliation, the opposition PAM alleges
widespread employment discrimination by the St. Kitts and Nevis
Labour Party against public sector employment of persons perceived
to be opposition supporters. PAM alleges that the ruling party
dismissed or demoted many PAM supporters from their jobs in order
to replace them with its own supporters. The Government acknowledged
that it had withheld pension benefits from opposition members
of Parliament voted out of office and entitled to such benefits.

There are no impediments in law or in practice to the participation
of women in leadership roles in government or political parties.
St. Kitts and Nevis' sole female member of Parliament chose not
to run for reelection in the June 1995 elections, and there were
no other female candidates. However, women do hold such high
government offices as permanent secretary and are active within
the political parties.

While there are no governmental restrictions, no local human rights
groups have been formed. There were no requests for investigations
or visits by international human rights groups.

Section 5 Discrimination Based on Race, Sex, Religion,
Disability, Language, or Social Status

The Constitution prohibits discrimination on grounds of race,
place of origin, birth out of wedlock, political opinion or affiliation,
color, sex, or creed, and the Government generally respects these
provisions in practice.

Women

According to a government official, violence against women is
a problem, but many women are reluctant to file complaints or
pursue them in the courts. Despite this reluctance, there were
publicly reported cases of both domestic violence and rape, and
a few convictions. A special police unit works closely with the
Ministry of Women's Affairs and Health to investigate domestic
violence and rape cases.

The role of women in society is not restricted by law but is circumscribed
by culture and tradition. There is no overt societal discrimination
against women in employment, although sectoral analyses suggest
that women do not yet occupy as many senior positions as men.
An active Women's Affairs Bureau is promoting change in this
area.

Children

The Government is committed to children's rights and welfare and
has incorporated most of the provisions of the U.N. Convention
on the Rights of the Child into domestic legislation.

People With Disabilities

Although there is no legislation to protect the disabled or to
mandate accessibility for them, the Government and the Constitution
prohibit discrimination in employment, education, and other state
services.

Section 6 Worker Rights

a. The Right of Association

The Constitution provides for the right of all workers to form
and belong to trade unions. The law permits the police, civil
service, and other organizations to have associations which serve
as unions. The major labor union, the St. Kitts Trades and Labour
Union, is affiliated with the St. Kitts and Nevis Labour Party
and is active in all sectors of the economy. There is also an
independent teachers' union, a union representing dockworkers
in the capital city, and two taxi drivers' associations.

The right to strike, while not specified by law, is well established
and respected in practice. St. Kitts and Nevis joined the International
Labor Organization in 1996 and assumed all its obligations for
enforcement of labor standards. There were no major strikes during
the year.

Unions are free to form federations or confederations and to affiliate
with international organizations. The islands' unions maintain
a variety of international ties.

b. The Right to Organize and Bargain Collectively

Labor unions are free to organize and to negotiate for better
wages and benefits for union members. The law prohibits antiunion
discrimination but does not require employers found guilty to
rehire employees fired due to antiunion discrimination. However,
the employer must pay lost wages and arrange for severance pay.
There is no legislation governing the organization and representation
of workers, and employers are not legally bound to recognize a
union, but in practice employers do so if a majority of workers
polled wish to organize. Collective bargaining takes place on
a workplace by workplace basis, not industrywide. The Labor Commission
mediates all types of disputes between labor and management on
an ad hoc basis. In practice, however, few disputes actually
go to the Commission for resolution. If neither the Commission
nor the Minister of Labor can resolve the dispute, legislation
allows for a case to be brought before a civil court.

There are no export processing zones.

c. Prohibition of Forced or Compulsory Labor

The Constitution forbids slavery and forced labor, and they do
not occur in practice. While neither the Constitution nor law
specifically addresses bonded labor, it has not been a problem
in practice.

d. Status of Child Labor Practices and Minimum Age for
Employment

The 1966 Employment of Children Ordinance outlaws slavery, servitude,
and forced labor, and prescribes the minimum legal working age,
which is 14 years. Although the law does not specifically address
bonded labor (see Section 6.c.), it has not been a problem in
practice. The Labor Ministry relies heavily on school truant
officers and the community affairs division to monitor compliance,
which they do effectively. The law mandates compulsory education
up to the age of 16.

e. Acceptable Conditions of Work

A 1984 law, updated in 1994, establishes minimum wage rates for
various categories of workers, such as domestic servants, retail
employees, casino workers, and skilled workers. The minimum wage
varies from $56.18 (EC$ 150) per week for full-time domestic workers
to $74.91 (EC$ 200) per week for skilled workers. These provide
an adequate, though Spartan, living for a wage earner and family;
many workers supplement wages by keeping small animals such as
goats and chickens. The Labor Commission undertakes regular wage
inspections and special investigations when it receives complaints;
it requires employers found in violation to pay back wages.

The law provides for a 40- to 44-hour workweek, but the common
practice is 40 hours in 5 days. Although not required by law,
workers receive at least one 24-hour rest period per week. The
law provides that workers receive a minimum annual vacation of
14 working days. While there are no specific health and safety
regulations, the Factories Law provides general health and safety
guidance to Labor Ministry inspectors. The Labor Commissioner
settles disputes over safety conditions. Workers have the right
to report unsafe work environments without jeopardy to continued
employment; inspectors then investigate such claims.

[end of document]

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